Trempealeau residents decidedly vote to increase taxes, keep community pool

Some races in local elections come down to a handful of votes.

The referendum question asking residents in the Village of Trempealeau to permanently increase taxes to keep the local pool running, though, passed in decided fashion at last Tuesday’s spring election.

Voters passed the referendum with a 72-percent approval rate, with 512 voters voting ‘Yes’ to overcome the 192 votes against the pool ask.

The referendum will increase the village’s tax levy by $120,006 each year to bring the total levy to just over $1 million. The new levy will take effect in 2024 after the village opted to keep the pool for the 2023 season regardless of the referendum results.

Multiple stakeholders in the community say they were happy to see the community give their input on what should happen next with the Trempealeau pool.

“We want to thank the community for their support of the municipal pool and for providing a very clear answer with 72% of voters voting yes,” Isaac Pooler, village administrator/finance director, wrote in a statement to the Times. “The increase in our levy of $120,006 will be dedicated to the pool budget going forward.”

Current Village President Kurt Wood has served on the village board for the last 30 years and is set to step away from the position later this month after not seeking reelection. 

Wood said he was surprised to see the referendum pass with such overwhelming support but added that it was a welcomed result. Kids spending time learning how to swim and having an active outlet for their summers is never a bad thing, especially in a small community, Wood said. 

“It’s really good to see the community stood up for something they thought was truly important to everybody,” Wood said.

Jeff Barry, who voters elected last Tuesday to fill Wood’s position as the new village president, said he was also happy to see the referendum pass.

“I’m glad that it did. It’s obviously very important to the community,” Barry said, “and I think that the community agrees and they supported it overwhelmingly when it came to the voting booths.”